1964-1965

Undrafted after an injury-plagued career at Southern University, Hill signed with the Chiefs for a $300 signing bonus (payable only if he made the club), then became the surprise of the 1964 American Football League season, running 105 times for 567 yards and a league-best 5.4 per carry average. Extremely raw but determined, “The Truck” quickly became a featured weapon in the Chiefs’ offensive attack, gaining 627 yards in his second season. Injured at Buffalo in the next-to-last game of the 1965 season, he needed knee surgery. But two days later, in the midst of the procedure, his body temperature spiked to 108 degrees and he died of hyperthermia. “Mack Lee Hill will never be forgotten in the hearts and minds of many of us,” eulogized Len Dawson, “for Mack has set an example of living and competing for all of us to try to follow.” A year later, the Chiefs established the Mack Lee Hill Award to honor the rookie who best exemplifies Hill’s spirit. “He became a legend, as he should have,” said Jerry Mays. “And I think he became an inspiration for the kind of effort he had always given.”